All posts by Pinkmistle06

ALRIGHT TIME FOR CHAPTER

TRYING OUT NEW WRITING STYLE FOR DREAM BECAUSE WHY NOT

BRAIN GO ZOOM

ZOOM SO FAST

YEE, AND I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH, HAW

~~~

It'd been about an hour since everyone came to that conclusion, of Percy being the one to watch over Marie while everyone else got on with other duties. There weren't any until dinner, and so the time was spent either socializing, standing guard, walking around the forest a bit, or reading a book. That last one was Marcus, and Marcus only. Percy had to hand it to her brother, he was dedicated to nothing if not his reading.

And on a similar note, Percy was sitting next to Marie's sleeping form, reading a book of spells herself. Marie was still flickering back and forth, illuminating the inside of the tent whenever she came into her ANGEL FORM. Percy couldn't lie to herself in that it was mildly comedic, were it not so worrying. Her thoughts kept fluttering back to Marie as she tried to focus on the book, when she finally closed the book with a sigh and sat it next to her.

Percy then looked right at Marie to make sure she was still breathing. Indeed, the slow rise and fall of her chest and torso indicated that she was breathing still. Percy examined the sleeping woman, well aware that it was a bit creepy, but she couldn't do anything else without worrying. Her ANGEL FORM had Marie's body in the same build, being a slightly cumbersome but muscular form, yet somehow a ways taller. Percy didn't understand why Marie was given so much extra height in her ANGEL FORM, she was already the tallest of the group aside from Darien and his broad build. The wings that were usually so grandly spread from her back were flat against the floor as Marie laid there, and now that Percy was up close she could see how impossibly soft the feathers were. She was tempted to touch, but she was too intimated.

***

Gravity Rush OST - RecollectionYouTube

And the reason she was intimated was because she was worried of waking her beloved, who could be in the middle of an important vision.

The reason wasn't unfounded in the slightest, it'd been nearly every night that Marie received either a dream from Megami or was training with the people within her SOUL. It made nights lonely whenever Marie had fallen asleep too early, from how utterly exhausted she'd been. Percy shared that exhaustion, but not quite to the same degree. She knew that Marie must have felt lonely, holding those responsibilities on her own. It wasn't like Percy was just letting her continue like this, it was that Marie refused to accept help. "I'm the leader, I hold the responsibilities. You shouldn't have to, my love." Those words echoed in Percy's head all the time, filled with such love but causing so much worry. Percy then sighed again, sitting up straight. "Okay, that's it." She said, half to herself. The other half was if Marie could indeed hear her. "Whether you like it or not, I'm gonna start helping and you're not gonna stop me." Percy knew she wouldn't get an answer right now.

***

Dust OST - BoneheadYouTube

Her thoughts were interrupted when a clang was heard, followed by an apology. "Sorry, slipped out!" It was Aaron, of course. The fiery elemental, while (heh) hotheaded and having the tendency to bite off more than he could chew due to his pride, was indeed a bit clumsy. Oh yes, he was strong. He had the muscles and was able to carry heavy things (*cough* Just barely Marie *cough*), but in terms of grace, he fell short.

***

Gravity Rush OST - Passing MomentYouTube

Percy couldn't help but shake her head with an exasperated sigh, but she did so with a smile. She then looked back at Marie. She gently grasped Marie's hand in her own, holding it. Marie's hands were rough, all due to how many weapons she'd wielded along with how much she used them. Yes, telekinesis was an option for Marie (even without the ghost buddies, she'd be able to use it from her base magic), but Marie preferred to save that for things she couldn't reach (that was rare, as Marie was tall as hell). But along with the roughness, her hands were very warm. Percy loved to hold hands with Marie, just as the tall women enjoyed it as well. It always gave the purple haired woman a warm feeling in her chest as love made her cheeks flush with warmth.

***

Undertale OST: 029 - Danger MysteryYouTube

Suddenly, something broke her out of her thoughts and slightly flustered state. Percy didn't know exactly what it was, but it felt as if the very atmosphere had shifted. As if something had broken the previously semi-mellow air. Percy stood up and looked around, her lavender eyes beginning to produce a light glow. She couldn't quite place what had happened, but everything from her gut to her head kept telling her something was wrong. She opened the tent door just slightly while popping her head on through-

***

"WAH-!" Percy let out a shriek as she jumped back in surprise. She'd been met with the turquoise face of Misty, staring right at her. And right on cue, Misty let out a loud series of snorts and giggles.. She moved her way into the tent as she wiped a tear from the corner of her left eye before helping Percy onto her feet. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Misty apologized as the fins on the sides of her head fanned out. She smiled with slightly sharper teeth than what a human would have. Percy sighed with a smile. "It's alright." Percy thought for a moment before continuing. "Were you waiting or did you happen to be there?" She asked with the small cocking of her head. Misty shook her head with a smile. "I'd just walked over to check on you, when you popped your head on through!" Percy nodded, sighing a tiny bit. Misty's lighthearted smile turned to a frown as she looked at Percy with concern in her aqua eyes.

***

Undertale - Premonition OrchestraYouTube

"You looked concerned and worried when you popped your head out. Is everything okay?" Misty's gaze flitted to Marie for a moment before going back to Percy. The human woman sighed as she nodded. "I don't know what's going on. It felt like...I dunno, something disturbed the atmosphere. I have no clue." Misty took this in before casting a glance back towards the door. Her mermaid-like tail flicked with uncertainty. "That sounds important, and like something you should tell either Marie or Okami about." "I know, and since Marie's been out for the last couple hours, I was gonna go get Okami."

"You rang?" Misty and Percy both jumped (it's up to your imagination as to how Misty jumped since she floats) with their own respective yelps of surprise as the wolf woman opened the tent door and popped her head in unexpectedly. She smiled mischievously as her amber eye sparkled with amusement before stepping in fully, closing the tent door behind her. Percy sighed in relief before looking right at Okami. "You see, there's-"

***

Gravity Rush OST - Clearly DangerousYouTube

SNAP!

CRASH!

The sound of something big and loud snapping and crashing to the ground was heard. "WHAT IN THE SEVEN KINGDOMS WAS THAT?!" Aaron was heard shouting. The three women burst out of the tent. Percy took a deep breath. "Okami, go find the others in the woods!" Okami nodded with a grunt as she bolted into the trees. "Aaron, stay here with Justin, Marcus, and Pebbles to secure the camp!" Aaron whipped around to look at Percy with a nod, giving a thumbs up and a confident smile. Justin jumped up with a smile, looking pumped up. Pebbles nodded with a serious expression. Marcus stood up fully while putting his book away. "You can count on us, sis." He said with a small smile. Percy nodded with a smile. "Misty, with me." Percy said as she turned towards the mermaid-like woman. "Right!"

And just like that, Misty and Percy both rushed into the woods towards the ear-shattering noise. After a couple minutes, they found themselves at a tree stump, with a toppled over tree next to it. "Well, there's where the noise came from..." Misty muttered. "Could have just been broken from age." She suggested. Percy examined the stump, running her fingers across the oddly smooth edges. "No. Too smooth." She replied. "If it were age and it suddenly broke, it'd be splintered. The edges are smooth, as though it's been cut in one blow." Misty now had a worried expression on her face.

A scream of terror cut through both of their thoughts as it caused Percy to jump up. "Quick!" Misty pointed in the direction of the scream and started rushing immediately. Percy quickly followed, keeping pace with her. And just like that, they found themselves in a clearing.

"P-please, let me go...!" A girl begged. She looked to be about twelve years old with fair white skin and pale blonde hair, sapphire blue eyes, and a petite figure. She looked small and frail, showcasing that even more as she shook with fear on the ground. And the one in front of her who had her back to the two women was someone they were all too familiar with.

And then, the attacker turned to see Percy and Misty, contempt glittering in her cold eyes. A sinister grin spread across her face. "Well, didn't expect to see you two here." "Yukina!" Percy growled out, summoning her sword. Water began to swirl around Misty mildly as she prepared for battle, glaring right at the evil warrior.

...

Dust OST - MelancholyYouTube

"I'm sorry." Ink choked out between sobs. He kept repeating the phrase as Marie held him, unable to stop crying. Marie continued to rub his back as she hummed a melody of memory, trying her best to calm the artsy skeleton down. Dream took a step forward when his eyesockets suddenly went wide, his eyelights returning and shrinking. He looked on at Marie and Ink as though he was seeing a ghost. The others joined in witnessing an apparent disturbance.

...

Glitchtale HATE OST - Sorrowful MelancholyYouTube

It went so dark so quickly. How could such a friendly meeting turn so sour? But Dream was fully aware of why. He stood there next to his brother Nightmare as he watched his friend Ink sob in the arms of an Angel. He could feel the bitter melancholy seeping into the air with each sob Ink's mouth released, the sorrow like the torrent of a downpour, and the grief bleeding into the air all the same. He couldn't blame his dear friend though. Those feelings that Ink suffered mingled with his own anguish that weighed so heavily upon his shoulders and SOUL. The feelings of having lost someone so close to you, someone you thought would be there forever. Someone who did more than enough constantly, who fought with such ferocity whenever her friends were concerned, who...

Dream let those thoughts stop, already feeling the tears building up. This grief wasn't his everything, but it sure wasn't going away. And it was infinitely worse for Ink. No one would dare bring her up, for fear that Ink would break down yet again. It was so foreign to the artsy skeleton to have a bond quite as close as they once were, since she was the very first he ever made.

And when Marie held his shaking form in her arms, Dream took a step forward to help comfort his friend...

...when he realized something in horror yet joy.

She reminded him of her.

So strongly, Marie reminded Dream of the heart of the ragtag band of Sanses that he was a part of.

He could practically see her now.

The flowing golden cape, wavy and almost blonde hair messily tied into a long ponytail that wove around anything it could, the elegant posture that she tended to hold, the love she showed towards others...

...her sky blue eyes.

The sky blue eyes, exactly like Marie's.

Why?

Why did Marie remind him so much of her?

He heard footsteps behind him, sensing similar shock.

He knew, right then and there.

Nightmare, Killer, Horror, Dust, Error, Blue, Cross.

All of them saw the same thing as him.

And it was her, a Guardian, that held Ink so carefully and with so much care.

But how could that be, when the Guardian was dead with the Angel living?

How in the seven kingdoms and beyond did she look so much like her?

But then, Killer took another step forward, tears spilling from his eyesockets and mixing with the black tar that was normally produced and running down his cheekbones. He looked right at Marie and gasped out a single word as a question.

"Pink?"

Here we fricking go

Now listen here, y'all

I know about the pages and crap, but I gotta make a post here with the chapter, this wiki will have WAYYYY too many pages if I add each and every HopeTale chapter as well as AUs to come and such.

Also, I've come to realize something and I'm doing stuff about it.

The rating of this story on both Ao3 and Fanfiction has been upped to mature for a few reasons.

Example: The previous battle against Yukina that resulted in Marie's back bursting open with Nightmare's tentacles.

We're gonna have more graphic crap like that happening, we're shifting into SERIOUS MODE

...well

I wanna have a [REDACTED BECAUSE MENTION OF GENITALIA] joke or two

So I'm contemplating no longer posting the chapters on this wiki, since I know about the stuff on how we're not actually allowed to swear here and such, and I've already gotten banned once over swearing.

So yeah.

I've started to watch JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, prepare for references

Speedwagon best girl

Anyways, onto the chapter

Get ready for mystery and stuff!

LORE!

Also enjoy the friendly skeles and Marie being a supportive mom friend

Oh yeah, lore, keep that in mind

Gonna do the rest of the Hope Squad's perspective next chapter, aight?

Oh, and probably not gonna do music for this chapter.

I should let the writing speak for itself.

Well, except for the last bit.

~~~

Marie had spent a bit of time with these outliers of Sanses, and learned a few things. Things she wasn't expecting. Now yes, Marie had to ask them a certain question. But she had a feeling that would bring...something.

She couldn't put her finger on it. It felt as though asking this question would unlock plenty of...heavy emotions. So, she thought it best to get to know these people before asking of the girl. She didn't know how long it'd been, or how long she'd been asleep. She had to be unconscious or at least not in control to be within the SOULSCAPE, and she was betting more on the former. But for some reason, she felt like it wasn't taking a long time at all in the real world, even though it felt like a few hours to her. Was she aware of both passages of time at once? That was a thought to ponder later, however.

Things were getting...

Very.

Interesting.

At least, that's what Gaster would say, ehehe.

Either way, she was learning things about these strange skeletons.

For one, Killer loved to bake. He had explicitly stated that he only used his knife for self defense and cutting cake, saying that it was something an old friend would remind him of. His single eyelight in his left eyesocket would always light up whenever he talked about his friends, baking, new recipes, and it turned out that old habits died hard since he also had an ornamental knife collection. Purely for decoration, he swore. He was so sweet that Marie would believe it anyway, but it helped that the other Sanses backed him up. He was super compassionate and an absolute sweetheart, acting a bit mischievous at times. But that was occasional. He was mostly a voice of reason when needed, only acting goofy if encouraged by others.

Horror, similarly to Killer, had a knack for cooking and a bit of baking, but more cooking in terms of meals rather than pastries or sweets. Though he most definitely had a sweet tooth. And a meat tooth. As well as a tooth for just about everything. Turns out, Horror was quite the glutton. Well, that wasn't too surprising. But that wasn't his only memorable trait, as he was also quite skilled at sewing, specifically clothes and quilts. He was incredibly strong too as backed up by his friends, he could apparently rip trees right out of the ground. Marie didn't need to see it to believe it, he was quite large and just about as tall as her. He gave warm hugs as well, his single crimson eyelight sparkling with warmth and kindness with each embrace. Marie swore she could feel her heart swell with emotion every time.

Dust was a fan of knowledge and research, embracing theorizing and things that were called metaphysics, quantum mechanics and physics, and even things of space. These concepts were relatively new to Marie, as she only learned what space was when Outertale was explained to her. She couldn't quite wrap her head around the space far above the sky being devoid of air or the sun being a ball of hot and pressurised gas, but she understood that it was an odd truth of the world. She had to admit, the metaphysics and quantum mechanics intrigued her. Perhaps if she lived long enough, she'd be able to see these things be discovered in her world. But that was unlikely, right? Dust loved to ramble on and on about his favorite subjects, as well as various things of entertainment he was fond of. She didn't know what group went by the name of Game Theory, but Dust was having fun explaining, so she went along with it. It was such a drastic change from his previously quiet and shy demeanour that it was jarring at first, but the way Dust was so passionate about these subjects, it most definitely made Marie smile and want to listen.

Error, as expected, had a love of knitting along with watching Undernovella and eating chocolate. He loved to make little dolls of different people living in the general corner where he and his friends resided in, though not necessarily meeting them. But it didn't take long for him to open up just a tiny bit to Marie. He enjoyed playing video games, something Marie absolutely could not wrap her head around.

(Sparks of electricity going through little bits of metal and making a display on a flat surface? Surely it was merely illusion magic! But no, it wasn't magic in the slightest!)

He liked to knit little sweaters and hats and scarfs, of which he was a bit reluctant to admit. Marie didn't pry any further, but she could tell that Error felt welcome in her company, of which made her glad that he felt alright talking to her. The last thing she wanted to do was to make anyone uncomfortable talking to her, the want being near unreasonable in the intensity. Why was it so intense? She didn't know.

Nightmare enjoyed reading books in a quiet nook with perhaps a cup of tea nearby, matching the image Marie immediately had in her mind when she was learning of his favorite thing to do. He was the leader of the Amends, the name of what would normally be the Bad Sanses, but in the sense of this ragtag crew. He was the most mature, he almost never fooled around and was quite serious. The imposing leader did have a soft spot in particular for Killer, of which made Marie smile upon witnessing the soft grin that appeared briefly on Nightmare's face whenever he saw the smaller skeleton. She could tell they were romantically involved, the little smooch Killer snuck on Nightmare's cheek bone gave it away. Especially the profuse blushing that followed. She noticed there wasn't near the same hostility nor hatred within him as there was in his classic self, and noticed the bond he shared with his Dream. They got along, they never fought, it was as if the apple incident never happened. Well, not quite, but you know what I mean.

On that same note, Dream held a similar love of reading and tea. Except he would rather do so in a sunny field, or perhaps in a well-lit room in a comfy chair. He was mature like his brother, yet he was a bit more willing to have fun with the others than to stand and watch. He had a greater capacity for negativity compared to his classic self, seeing him get frustrated or saddened among other things for longer periods of time than his classic self. He enjoyed archery heavily, and the consequence of this love was his main weapon. Dream had his bow and arrow, the bow looking far more styled and rather fancy than before. The arrow itself was far more golden than the yellow energy that would normally form it with Classic Dream.

It intrigued her similarly to the prospect of the knowledge of metaphysics and things of the like with Dust, only for this, she could start learning it as soon as she woke up. She jotted that down mentally, asking her teammates if any of them have any pointers on archery. She also reminded herself to keep note to ask Dream of it later.

Dream was incredibly sweet and compassionate, almost to a level greater than his original self. He was always concerned about the people around him, aware of the beauty of the worlds he knew. He, actually, enjoyed talking about his favorite spots to read books or to just be alone with his thoughts for while. This included flower fields, peaceful forests, snowy meadows, even outer space as Outertale existed. His smile was so warm that Marie swore she felt like she was in the sun every time he did so.

Blue was a swordsman and a magnificent one at that. He could summon a longsword with a hilt and guard made of bone, but the blade itself was made of metal or something of the like. The blade was tinted blue and yellow. Blue made quite the show of his skills by flamboyantly slicing bones he sent his own away to pieces, showing both his speed, accuracy, and the sharpness of his blade. He was fond of cooking, specifically to master making tacos. Marie had to admit, they were better than his original self's version. He had the tendency to shout whenever he spoke along with occasionally striking a pose or his cape somehow flowing despite there being no wind, but Marie found it more endearing than anything. He was very kind and compassionate as well, wanting to help others constantly. He was always extremely energetic, being able to apparently run the entire way of the Underground in under thirty minutes and not get tired. At least, his Underground.

Cross was a knight in black and white armor. Well, black and white clothes, not quite any armor there. Regardless, he was affectionately referred to as an Oreo by Dream and the rest of the gang. Marie now knew what Oreos were, they were chocolate cookies with white frosting sandwiched between them. And Marie being Marie in that she absolutely loved food in general, she wanted to try it. Similarly to Killer and Nightmare, Dream and Cross appeared to share a romantic relationship or at the very least attraction, as evidenced by the flirting and Cross picking Dream up in his arms while nuzzling him a little. This ended up making the guardian of positivity blush profusely, being unable to speak for a solid five seconds.

The flower crown upon his head would glow in varying hues and brightness according to his emotions. When asked about it, Cross brushed it off saying that it was magic. Marie noted that the skeletons appeared to tense up when she asked that question.

Cross wielded a giant knifesword on his back that could turn into what Marie understood was the HACK KNIFE, along with a couple daggers strapped secretly to various parts of his body. Marie knew this because Cross (with a rather manic smile) showed her, creating a pile of knives next to him. It was as unnecessary as it was ridiculous, but Marie had to admit that he was prepared for a fight. For an odd reason, one Marie doubted would ever get explained within her earshot, XChara wasn't present despite Cross having quite the mishmash of a SOUL.

(Maybe on a one-off thingamajig, once more pieces begin to be placed on the table.)

And last but not least, Ink.

He wielded his large paintbrush, Broomie, with extreme skill. He could easily whip it out to create something, and just as easily bonk someone. Or knock them off their feet. Or something more normal than bonking. He was incredibly flexible, expressing such by bending over backwards and grabbing his legs while putting his face between them, all while still standing with ease (INOSUKE). He took great amusement when Marie reacted with amazement and awe. While Marie was strong and could lift people up with ease, she wasn't all that flexible despite her grace. She almost wished she could trade her strength for such apt for gymnastics (Ink could do backflips, frontflips, somersaults, cartwheels, you name it). Ink absolutely loved to draw, write, create (to zero surprise on Marie's part), but also enjoyed playing different video games and other entertainment of the like. He was very interested in Marie, but not in the romantic way. He kept looking her over in absolute awe, as though he was meeting a childhood hero. Or he was seeing a ghost. He brushed it off when Marie asked him if he was alright, making the tall woman wonder why exactly he was this way with her. But appearance, interests, and weapons weren't quite much of a concern. After all, there was something about him that set him apart a bit, as it was an oddity unlike Error being calm or Horror being warm and sweet.

He was the most curious one out of the bunch. Namely because of his SOUL.

Ink had a SOUL, much to the heavy surprise of Marie. She knew that the original creator didn't have one and relied upon vials to pretend he had one, vials that gave him feelings according to the color. The SOUL was a very pretty marbled rainbow, all sorts of vibrant colors swirling around inside. The vibrancy carried over to his eyeshapes, of which shone marvelously with each and every color they presented with the different shapes. The marbled rainbow was held within borders of pink and red, both colors equally as vibrant as the rest. And the borders shaped the whole thing into a heart shape, the same shape as a human SOUL. The pink and red reminded Marie of the reason she approached these skeletons in the first place, the reason to seek them out was beginning to make more and more sense.

When Marie asked Ink how he got his SOUL, his eyeshapes...

They grew wistful as well as his expression. The eyeshapes had turned from the multicolor question marks to a teardrop and an exclamation mark. His smile faded as his hands (that were cupped just under his floating SOUL) twitched a little. "...maybe it's best for me not to answer right now." He said with a small, sorrowful voice. There was such genuine grief that it nearly made Marie stumble, being such a drastic change coming from left field. Then, Marie came to a conclusion. She needed to wrap this up, as she had now lost track of time. She then cleared her throat loud enough for the skeletons to hear her, and stood at a small distance so they all could see her.

All eyes were on Marie now.

She took a deep breath and began to speak.

"While I've enjoyed the time we've spent so far together, there is a reason for why I've visited you all." She at first had their attention, but now she had their interest. "...I've come here because of a vision I've had. And when I consulted Megami, who visited me shortly after, she told me to come to you all." Marie paused for one more moment to take another breath, seeing everyone's reactions so far. Mostly a mix of curiosity and confusion. She spoke once more.

"I saw and met a girl, looking awfully like me whenever I'm in my ANGEL FORM. Except she wasn't white. She was in all pink and red, being a young girl in her teens-"

Marie was cut off as a gasp erupted out of Ink's mouth. His hands flew to cover it, his eyelights disappearing. Marie pointed at him a little, her expression shifting to one of realization. "You know her?" Tears were welling at the corners of his eyesockets. Marie felt a stab in her chest as a feeling of heartache set in. Everyone's eyelights had collectively gone out. Dream had his hand on Ink's shoulder, looking worried. He then looked at Marie. "...we do." He croaked, as though he was forcing himself to not be emotional.

***

[Karaoke | off vocal] Unknown Mother Goose [wowaka]YouTube

Suddenly, Ink bolted away, running into the distance. "Wha- HEY!" Error shouted. Marie whipped around to see Ink running, running quite fast. "We have to catch him!" Marie cried, giving chase herself.

She heard the clambering of footsteps as the others followed her, but she remained in the lead. Marie may have had a cumbersome figure, but she was fast as hell. A quality she was taking full advantage of right now, running at full speed as worried faces passed her. The other AUs of people were looking on, a curious and worried chatter beginning to arise. Marie took a deep breath, and not halting in her pace, she shouted loud enough for all to hear.

"EVERYONE! HELP US CATCH HIM! QUICK!" She was practically screaming this, but her tone was nothing but serious and confident, ringing with urgency. Undyne suddenly came into view, running next to Marie. "KINDA HARD TO KEEP PACE WITH YA, PUNK!" She breathlessly shouted. "THEN HELP STOP HIM SO YOU WON'T HAVE TO!" Marie commanded. "RIGHT!" And right on cue, a wall of spears appeared in front of Ink. He swerved to the side and kept on, only to be met with more spears. This continued, with Marie and everyone having to run around the spears as well at one point.

Suddenly, Dust jumped into the air and summoned a gasterblaster, riding right on it towards Ink. But just before he truly took off, he dangled his arm towards Marie for her to grab. She jumped up and took it, being pulled up by him with quite a bit of effort. Dust then pointed at Ink in the distance with urgency. "Now that you've got a clear view, teleport. You've got a better range than others, I've seen it in action when you were training. Quickly." Marie nodded, looking at the area in front of Ink. She closed her eyes tightly, focusing hard.

And with a flash of aqua and yellow, Marie was met with a hard collision against hard bone. She'd arrived just in front of Ink, of whom was still running at Mach 1 (exaggerating a bit here). Marie tumbled backwards, but made sure to wrap her muscular arms around him as she did. Ink cried out in surprise (thankfully not pain) as this happened, when the two at last stopped.

Despite Ink not having lungs, she could feel his ribcage very quickly rising and falling as though he was hyperventilating. She held him tightly in a hug, refusing to let go. Luckily for her, he wasn't struggling, so she relaxed her grip a little. She saw everyone arrive a few feet away from the two. Marie held up a hand to signal that she was going to handle this now. With worrisome steps, the Sanses backed away a little, but still watched carefully. And then, with his skull nestled on her shoulder, Ink let out a sob. His body jerked as more and more poured out, tears accompanying them too. Marie adjusted her arms to a more comforting embrace, gently putting her hand on his back, the other on the back of his head. With shaking arms, Ink found the will to hug her back. Marie had a feeling that whatever Ink was to tell her, it was going to be quite heavy.